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Button Tutorial

Written by Paula Yagisawa
Monday, 16 October 2006
Crops and Tutorials for learning to create your own elements! October Crops - making buttons using templates * This tutorial refers to templates that are/were only available during the crop. I've provided an additional template in this forum - right click on the template image to save it. (I hope it keeps the transparent background that I gave it!) This month - I'll teach you how to use these templates to make buttons and then... how to make your own templates. My instructions are fairly "generic" - they should work with any program. However, we had several PSP users and I answered several specific questions. I hope everyone has figured out how to make eyelets. If not, please review the tutorial on that topic. We'll be using the same type of process to make these buttons look real. For each button, I gave you two templates; these buttons all have an outer rim - each area will have it's own shaping, that's why they are in two files. When I save my own button templates, I save them as a layered file; you can go ahead and resave these layered. All except the heart are perfectly centered - the heart shifted for some reason and will need to be moved slightly to line up correctly. Do NOT merge the layers! Keep them seperate at this time. To make them into a layered file, open both files. Copy one of them (select all, copy) and then paste it into the other image as a new layer. When you save, make sure to save it using it's native format (.psp .psd etc) so it will stay layerd. Once you have the two parts in one layered file, you are ready to make it your own! Please notice that the inner and the outer overlap a little. This is on purpose - it insures that you won't have any gaps between the pieces! The first thing you will need to do is adjust the color. It's tempting to just "fill it in" with the new color, but that messes up the edges. So... use your software's color adjustment instead. Does everyone know how to recolor a file? I hope so - it's different in every program and sometimes hard to explain! Cyn gave a link during our first crop to a site that explains several ways to "recolor" in PSP. http://www.dizteq.com/scrapstuff/colorize1.html In other programs, look for enhance - and also look for hue/saturation. You'll need to adjust the color on each layer. You can make them both the same color, or different colors. I've used different colors for this tutorial because it is easier to see. After you have reclored each layer, you can add the beveling. This is what gives it the depth that makes it look real. In Psp - you'll find beveling uner Effects - 3D effects - inner bevel In PSE - use the "layer styles" tab on the palette dock - bevels - simple inner bevel Add a bevel each layer and adjust the bevel; then your button is made! You might want to try changing the order of the layers (rim on top or rim under) each will have a slightly different look, and you can select the one you like better. Here's two other looks from the same template: The first has a metal "rim" and the second has the layres merged before recloring and beveling. Following are some addition Q&A from the first crop. grannyb243701: what setting would you suggest Paula dreamerpaula: experiment with which layer is on top to get a look you like tjmuse: What type of bevel do you recommend dreamerpaula: ok, bevel settings in Psp 7 dreamerpaula: bevel #2 (simple shape) smoothness 75 - depth 8 - ambience 5 - shininess 20 dreamerpaula: you might need to lighten the button first - the darkest one didn't want to recolor for me either dreamerpaula: oh - light - white - angle 329 - intensity 65 - elevation 18 dreamerpaula: you do Not have to use those exact settings michie_michie: so you use the same bevel for both layers? dreamerpaula: I used the same settings just now - but sometimes I'll use different settings dreamerpaula: now... for a different look, we could merge the layers before doing the bevel dreamerpaula: that would make a button without the rim dreamerpaula: how to make a simple button template dreamerpaula: now that you know how to use a template - you can try making your own dreamerpaula: what I do is make my overall shape dreamerpaula: ok, let's start simple - no rim dreamerpaula: just a round button with two holes dreamerpaula: use a circle tool on a transparent image to make the overall shape dreamerpaula: you get to pick the size! dreamerpaula: keep in mind how big buttons should be - usually between 1/4 inch and around 1 inch dreamerpaula: after you have the shape made, I suggest doing the following: dreamerpaula: select all - cut - paste --- this will make it come up in the exact center dreamerpaula: after the circle is centered - you need to cut out the holes dreamerpaula: I find this easiest to do with the circle selection tool dreamerpaula: watch your settings (so you know where you are on the image) and do one side dreamerpaula: if you hold the shift key, it keeps it a true circle dreamerpaula: deselct and mirror the image before doing the second one dreamerpaula: that way, you can use the same settings to get the second hole exact! * By this, I mean to use your guide/ruler to make sure you position each hole in the same exact place. You'll want them to match in both size and position. dreamerpaula: you'll want your holes to be on the middle "equator" line if you are doing two dreamerpaula: so... if your image size is 2 inches - you would start just above the one inch mark and end just below it dreamerpaula: this is a little harder to explain - hope I'm able to make it clear Lol dreamerpaula: each program - and even each users "set up" is different dreamerpaula: I rarely use the rulers - I watch the x/y position dreamerpaula: in Psp - it shows in pixels - so on a 2 inch image, you'd want to do above and below the 300 mark dreamerpaula: I normally work in Pse 2 - but I also have Psp 7 dreamerpaula: I have Psp open now - so I can explain dreamerpaula: another way is to use a different button (like my templates) as a new layer dreamerpaula: use the wand selection to select the holes dreamerpaula: then, hide that layer and view your layer dreamerpaula: and finally clear the holes on your layer dreamerpaula: when I do holes for a four-hole button - I rotate 90 degrees each time and do each hole in the same spot dreamerpaula: at the end, I have four holes! dreamerpaula: you can get so many looks when you make your own buttons! dreamerpaula: if you use my templates... your credit should read: buttons by "me" using templates by Paula Yagisawa dreamerpaula: button making is almost as easy as eyelets dreamerpaula: that's why I wanted everyone to start there!

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